I give credit where it's due. This is, quite frankly, shocking and promising. It's at least a move in the right direction.

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The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints invited prominent gay activists including Milk screenwriter Dustin Lance Black to its Christmas concert in Salt Lake City over the weekend.

According to ABC 4 News, Black, software entrepreneur Bruce Bastian and a handful of Utah gay activists were among the VIP guests at the Saturday concert in Salt Lake City.

Black, who grew up in a Mormon household, spoke to the news station by phone about the invitation, which he called an extraordinary act of goodwill. He said that the Church and the gay community have started conversations in an effort to find common ground.

A source told ABC 4 News that the LDS Church might be willing to conduct outreach including assistance for homeless LGBTQ youths.

This isn't the first time they've reached out to the community in some capacity. They also recently worked on their behalf for anti-discrimination in housing. But they also draw a clear divide between activities like this, and what it means to be gay in the religion (i.e. it being an abomination, and a choice or a phase, which people can overcome), and they will continue to spend fountains of money fighting to oppose gay marriage.

This isn't the first time they've reached out to the community in some capacity. They also recently worked on their behalf for anti-discrimination in housing. But they also draw a clear divide between activities like this, and what it means to be gay in the religion (i.e. it being an abomination, and a choice or a phase, which people can overcome), and they will continue to spend fountains of money fighting to oppose gay marriage.

Not trying to bash them. But they need to be called out on that one.

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Oh- I'm under no illusions, believe me. But when they do something good, it deserves to be pointed out as well.

The good is news, and deserves attention, but the bad needs to be highlighted too. Helps to combat organizations which play down bad PR by washing someone's back while they secretly look for the best place to slip the knife in.

It is a measure of the enormity of the divide when sharing a room together constitutes "progress". Even the Koreas have managed that on occasion, and they are technically at war.

I was in Salt Lake City last year, and strolled through the LDS museum/indoctrination center at the temple. It's pretty bizarre.

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I'm no fan of the Mormons or any other religion for that matter, but they are pragmatic. It wasn't until the 70s that they allowed blacks to become members, women are slowly progressing upward and they've had phenomenal success in Latin and South America. Because whether they like it or not, their future success lies outside America's borders.

I've been to Salt Lake City 4 times now doing research at the Family History Library. Like it or not, the Mormons are the major organization for genealogy. It's a big place, staffed mostly by volunteers and entirely free. The only overt display of religion in the entire library, are small printed bible verses near the elevators. Even here at the local Mormon church's library where I occasionally do research, there's absolutely no mention of "conversion" or overt displays of religion.

The Mormons have been playing catch up ever since they realized that isolating themselves in the desert probably wasn't going to do them any good. Like any church their traditions means change is slow but change they will if their past is any indicator.

It wasn't until the 70s that they allowed blacks to become members, women are slowly progressing upward and they've had phenomenal success in Latin and South America. Because whether they like it or not, their future success lies outside America's borders.

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Like any good business one takes moves to gain more "customers". Going from a white male only church to women and blacks and then the latin community, gays are the next step in their money making campaign.

They're definitely not going to be performing gay marriages in the Temple next year but the church isn't stupid. They took a lot of heat and rightly so, for intervening in the Prop 8 campaign in California. 8 will probably be overturned and the Mormons will have gotten a black eye for nothing. This is a tactical move. Remember, the Mormon church is a massive business. They rake in ~10% from members, much of their outreach is financed by members themselves, not the mothership, and the church owns a lot of Salt Lake City and has enormous business interests. They're not ignorant tea baggers.

Gay rights has ceased to be a rallying cry in the US. For all intents an purposes, the fight is over and they know it.

I don't understand why it's so surprising, but it's a nice move, just the same.

Opposing same-sex marriage is not the same as hating gay people for being gay.

Christmas is a time when Christians are encouraged to reach out to people and show love, compassion, and charity for each other. Sounds like that's what the church is doing. And yes, it's a good thing, but not so surprising.

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